Being a witch is hard. It’s even harder when you live in a town that doesn’t believe in witches.

When young witch River Halloway moves to sleepy Brimstone Bay for her very first journalist job, she doesn’t expect to cover anything ground-breaking. That is, until a paranormal festival comes to town and a body is found on opening night. Now, with all evidence pointing towards a witch, River must find the true killer before she becomes the prime suspect, or worse, the next murder victim.

This is book 1 of the Brimstone Bay Mysteries series. If you’re a fan of Amanda M. Lee, Juliette Harper, and Amy Boyles, then be sure to get your fill of magic, mystery, and murder with this cozy new paranormal mystery series.

Book Excerpt:

Every day was a busy day at the office, given that the paper had only been around for a few weeks now and we were still trying to make a name for ourselves. JoAnn worked us extra hard, often expecting ten stories from each of us at a time, just to be sure that we didn’t run out of fresh material for the paper. It was a weekly publication, but by the number of hours that we worked every day, you would think that it was a daily report. I rolled my eyes with my back to her and took a big swig of the burning-hot coffee. God, it felt glorious.
When I turned back towards her, I noticed her eyeing the messy stack of papers I had on my desk and she raised her eyebrow quizzically like she so often liked to do.

“Oh, I just had an idea for a story. I wanted to get in early and prepare before you got here, but I’m not too sure I found what I was looking for.”

“Okay then, let’s hear it.” JoAnn picked up her cup, leaned back in her reclining chair with her feet up on the desk, and took a long sip of hot coffee. “What’ve you got?”

“Well, I was thinking. Nothing too exciting ever really seems to happen in this sleepy town. Why don’t we make something happen?”

“I’m listening.” She looked skeptical.

“Well.” I chose my words as cautiously as I could muster. “I heard the Shadow Festival is passing through Portland this week. Why don’t we ask them if they’ll come through Brimstone Bay on their tour?”

I sat in my chair and sipped my coffee, watching JoAnn as she stared at me wide-eyed.

She laughed suddenly. “You actually think a town like Brimstone Bay would allow the Shadow Festival to come through?” She laughed again.

“No, think about it. Summer is almost over and before we know it, fall will be here. The Shadow Festival will get people excited for the Halloween season. If anything, it will bring money into the town and help all the local businesses.

Besides, who doesn’t love a little spooky fun?”

She continued to laugh and shake her head. “It’s just not going to happen.”

“It would make for a great story,” I said. “There are only so many births, birthdays, and deaths that we can put in the paper before people start dying of boredom from what we’re writing.”

“I agree, it would make for a great story. It would certainly liven up this sleepy town. But there’s no way to get anyone here to agree to let the festival come through.” JoAnn sat her coffee on the desk and opened her laptop to begin her day’s work.

I chewed my lip, trying to think of ways that we could get past this hurdle. The Shadow Festival was a traveling fair that went from the West Coast to the East Coast and then back again each year, celebrating all things paranormal. Most people assumed it was just a show and took their kids there as a fun way to celebrate the beginning of the Halloween season. Sometimes, it was just a fun excuse to do something spooky in the off-season, depending on when they came through each town. They had all the typical treats like candied apples and caramel corn, but the real treat was seeing all the witches, werewolves, ghouls, and other paranormal creatures coming out in their full glory. They would be out and about and wouldn’t have to hide behind closed doors.

Of course, most people just thought that they were wearing costumes and were part of the show, but everyone from within the paranormal community knew otherwise. It was a fun way for us to get together, celebrate our heritage, and finally get to be ourselves in front of non-magical people. Not only was it fun and exciting, but it always drew a massive crowd and brought a lot of money into each city it traveled through. It was just the kind of thing that Brimstone Bay needed, both socially and economically.

“Well, if I can find a way to get approval from the mayor…” I eyed JoAnn, waiting to hear her response.

She glanced up at me from behind her laptop, raised her eyebrow again and made a mmhmm noise. “Well, you have my blessing, dear. Good luck with that.”

I grinned. What JoAnn didn’t know was that our young new mayor had a bit of a crush on me, and I had a feeling that I could persuade him to allow the festival to come to town. Not only did he like me, but he had spent the better part of 20 years in Los Angeles and was familiar with the paranormal community. Mayor Scott confided in me that he had a number of friends that were witches back in the city. While I never admitted to being one myself to him, I suspected he knew anyway.
I finished the rest of my first coffee, grabbed the second, picked up my sweater and backpack, and bounded out the front door before JoAnn could protest.

Author Bio:

N.M. Howell is an author, publisher, and all-around nerd from the West Coast of Canada. She has an obsession with coffee, spicy food, and the rain, and she absolutely hates sleeves! (Seriously, they’re like little fabric prisons.) When not working on her latest book – or latest ten books, more realistically – she spends her time working on her Master’s Thesis and fighting with her micro-wolf pup over who gets the best spot on the couch. Hint: the dog wins.